Rap readied vs woman who skipped quarantine to party
MANILA, Philippines — A woman who violated quarantine protocols upon arrival in the Philippines and went to a party instead will have to answer a legal complaint that authorities will file soon, the Bureau of Quarantine said Friday.
“The complaint against the individual involved in the recent case of violation is ready. The BOQ and the [Department of Health] are the complainants,” BOQ deputy director Roberto Salvador Jr. said in Filipino. The quarantine bureau is an agency under the DOH.
"This should serve as an example that our quarantine protocols should not be violated because doing so has a huge effect on the community," he added.
A woman who arrived from the United States this month skipped quarantine to party in Poblacion, a party and red-light district in Makati. She later tested positive for COVID-19.
The DOH earlier said that violators of minimum public health standards “shall be dealt in accordance with the law.” Non-adherence to COVID-19 guidelines and policies constitutes a violation of Republic Act 11332 or the Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Concern Act.
Under the law, violators shall be penalized with a fine between P20,000 and P50,000 or imprisonment of not less than one month but not more than six months, or both, at the discretion of the proper court.
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Connections
Berjaya Makati Hotel, the facility where the woman stayed, is also being investigated and has been ordered to explain the incident. The tourism department's show-cause letter to the hotel identified the woman as Gwyneth Anne Chua.
The woman claimed she got out of the quarantine hotel because of her “connections,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in an interview with Teleradyo.
"Ang narinig namin nagyayabang daw siya dahil naka-skip siya ng quarantine. May mga connections daw siya. Lahat ng nakasama niya sa party na ‘yun nag-positive tapos ‘yung mga nakasama nung na-positive, nag-positive rin," Romulo-Puyat said.
(We heard that the individual boasted that she was able to skip quarantine because she has connections. All those who were with her in the party tested positive and the contacts of those who tested positive also got the virus.)
She said the department has affidavits as well as photos and other proof that Chua broke quarantine. — Gaea Katreena Cabico
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